“The mummy of a sacrificed Inca girl was found in Argentina in 1999.” Source of caption: print version of the NYT article quoted and cited below. Source of photo: online version of the NYT article quoted and cited below.
(p. D3) Dr. Dávalos and Dr. Corthals and their colleagues report their findings in the journal PLoS One.
The researchers discovered the mummy, along with those of two other sacrificed children, in 1999.
“They were buried in a tomb, and the tomb was packed solid with volcanic ashes and covered in snow, so they did not desiccate,” Dr. Corthals said. “Their entire bodies were sealed and perfectly preserved.”
The sacrificed youths probably made a journey of as many as 1,500 miles from Cuzco, the capital of the Inca empire, to the summit, Dr. Corthals said. “The girl actually had gray hair, so I think they knew their fate,” she said. “And the little girl and boy also had their teeth ground down.”
For the full story, see:
SINDYA N. BHANOO. “OBSERVATORY; Disease Diagnosed in a 500-Year-Old Mummy.” The New York Times (Tues., July 31, 2012): D3.
(Note: the online version of the article is dated July 30, 2012.)
(Note: the online version, quoted above, corrects the mistaken “3,000 miles” number in the print version. It also replaces “Argentine researchers” with “The researchers.”)
The academic publication being summarized can be found at:
Corthals A, Koller A, Martin DW, Rieger R, Chen EI, Bernaski M, Recagno, G, Dávalos, LM . (2012) Detecting the Immune System Response of a 500 Year-Old Inca Mummy. PLoS ONE 7(7):e41244. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0041244